Karl Urban Signs on for Pete’s Dragon Remake

Although Michael C. Hall was said to be joining the cast ofWalt Disney Pictures’ upcoming remake of Pete’s Dragonearlier this month, TheWrap is now reporting that the “Dexter” star is no longer attached and that the role in question will now go to Karl Urban. The Star TrekandDredd star joins Academy Award winner Robert Redford (All is Lost, Captain America: The Winter Soldier), Bryce Dallas Howard (The Help, Jurassic World), Oakes Fegley (This is Where I Leave You), Oona Laurence (“Penny Dreadful”) and Wes Bentley (The Hunger Games, Interstellar) for the David Lowery (Ain’t Them Bodies Saints) film.

The original Pete’s Dragon, a hybrid of live action and animation, was released in 1977 and followed the adventures of Pete (Fegley), a young orphan boy with an imaginary friend, Elliot, who just happens to be an enormous animated dragon. The new version will offer the dragon via CGI and will have the Pete character joined by a human friend, Natalie (Laurence).

Urban can be seen in theaters starting tomorrow in The Loft, starring opposite Rachael Taylor who, herself, made headlines today as the latest addition to the cast of the new Netflix series “Marvel’s A.K.A. Jessica Jones.” He’s also set to return as Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy in next summer’s Justin Lin-helmed Star Trek sequel.

Lowery has also co-written the screenplay for Pete’s Dragon with Toby Halbrooks and is set to begin production shortly in New Zealand. Jim Whitaker (American Gangster, The Odd Life of Timothy Green) is attached to produce.